On BattleDay

IMPORTANT: Our original article pertained to the traditional paper & pencil format of taking exams. For 2020.Fall, all exams are being administered in a CBT (Computer-Based Testing) format at Pearson-Vue testing centres. As this is a new process, we've made adjustments to reflect the CBT format, however, this will be work in progress based on user feedback of the actual experience.

Time Management During the Exam

• Note: The better prepared you are, the more time pressure you'll be under because you'll be able to answer most (or all) of the questions. (If you are NOT well-prepared, then there will be less time pressure because there will be many questions you'll just have to skip.)

==> Most answers you can write in bullet points. You are tested on content, not grammar or style.

==> If you get stuck, don't linger. Take your best guess and move on.

==> You probably won't have time for review.

==> Cross out mistakes - don't erase. (Crossing out is faster.)

Exam Organization

You first need to understand how this exam is usually organized:

First quarter of exam	short-answer essay questions
Second quarter of exam	mainly calculations
Third quarter of exam	mainly calculations
Fourth quarter of exam	SAO & reinsurance (mostly short-answer)

If you peruse old exams, you'll see that the topics almost always appear in the same order. It's very predictable, and if you understand this you'll feel much calmer during the exam.

The First 5 minutes

Modifications for CBT format: When the exam was given with pencil and paper there was a cover sheet showing the point-values for each question. This cover sheet is now a tab in the Excel spreadsheet. You cannot print this, but you will be provided with a pen and scratch paper. You can still do the time management calculation explained below with appropriate modifications. You'll now have to make a note on your scratch paper which range of questions you want to allocate to each of the 4 one-hour periods during the exam. To avoid running out time, you must keep track of your time very strictly using the countdown clock on the screen.

• On the sheet with the point-value of the questions, use a highlighter to divide your time into four 1-hr parts. I've done a couple of examples: (This will be time well spent.)

Time Management 2018.Fall

Time Management 2018.Spring

→ For the CBT version of the exam, make a note of the range of questions you want to do in each hour on a separate sheet of scrap paper and don't use this piece of paper for anything else.

• If the exam has 70 points then do this roughly as follows:
  • Section 1: 20 points
  • Section 2: 15 points (first group of calculation problems and these take longer to do.)
  • Section 3: 15 points (second group of calculation problems.)
  • Section 4: 20 points

• Use your calculator to do this and on a separate piece of scrap paper make a note for which range of questions you want to do in each one-hour period.
• You have roughly 3.5 minutes to spend on each point on the exam but
  • The calculation problems take relatively longer, maybe 6-7 minutes per point.
  • The short-answer questions are generally quicker.

Begin Writing your Answers

Hour 1:

• Start with Section 2. That's where the first group of calculation problems usually is.
  • The calculation problems are harder so you should do these when your brain is fresh.
  • Keep an eye on your watch and aim to finish Section 2 within the first hour.
  • If you get to a problem that you can't do, don't linger. Quickly type in anything you think might be relevant and move on. You can almost always take an educated guess and get partial credit, even if it's just 0.25 points.
• As you work through the problems:
  • If you are satisfied with your answer, simply move on the next question.
  • If you are not satisfied with your answer, write the question number on your time management sheet so you know to come back to it later (if there's time.)

Hour 2:

• Move on to Section 3. This is where you'll find most of the remaining calculation problems.

Hour 3:

• Move on to Section 4.
• These will mostly be short-answer questions. Your brain may be getting tired at this point, but these short-answer questions are easier because they're mainly memorization.
• If you are properly prepared for the exam, then Section 4 should be easier than Sections 2 & 3.

Hour 4:

• Go back to Section 1. You're in the home stretch, and this will be mostly short-answer. If you're prepared, it shouldn't be too hard.
• But before starting, skim the questions in this section.
  • If there are questions at the end of this section that you know how to do, make sure you get to them!
  • The worst thing is running out of time and not answering a question you know!

A Small Adjustment (if you desire)

• Some people have said they'd rather start with an easy essay question instead of a hard calculation problem. If you want to do that, you can pick out an easy question from Section 1 and then follow the time management strategy above. It might give you a nice boost of confidence at the outset. (Be careful however. If you do more than a couple of questions out of order, you'll be spending too much time shuffling papers on your desk. It will already be challenging to finish the exam in 4 hours.)

Exam is Over

• GO HOME & CHILL!!!!